RWA updates~~~

The past two days have been completely exhausting. In a good way of course. And Katiebabs presents *wink*:

Tuesday: So I snuck out early in the morning to get on the 6AM BART. Clean up, ate some food, and got ready for a 5hr tour of San Francisco. The tour was fun although our guide was kind

of...er... strict.

It was lots of fun. We saw many places, but didn't get to do much. We met up with Sula and LisaBea (and the Mr.) . First time meeting Wendy and Rosie; there's already plans for SoCal get togethers :D.

Tracy left *sniff sniff* and I left before Jane got there. They all partied afterwards. Hehehe.

Wednesday:

The one thing I'm sure everyone here has noticed about me is my lack of direction. I got lost in the morning trying to get to Denny's. Angie was sooooooooooo nice and bought all of us breakfast.

Then, we went to support Jane and Sarah for something that you may see on Friday. If you have cable. Hehehehe. Walking to the elevator from Rosie and co.'s apartment, I saw Gena Showalter and Jill Monroe. I screamed, hugged them both, and stood there like a ditz staring while Rosie spoke with them. >_<>

Walking to Borders, Amy was able to make it just in time to join and walk with us. While we were walking (yes, a lot of walking, did I mention I'm a SoCal girl? Not used to all the walking) to the bookstore, there was some confusion as to where we were going. Sarah flagged down a taxi (it was awesome, she rushed to the road and flagged them down; what a pro) then we all rushed into the minivan with two people sitting on others' laps. Angie and I became close. ;)

Once at Borders, I hid for a while until we need "body fillers." Seriously. Anyhow, as the lovely lady started reading, this little nagging feeling kept appearing and I realized it was Beverly Jenkins. Yes, she read a part of her new book and it has awesome. Ms. Jenkins was reading a wonderful part, but the interviewer wanted something hotter. Clearly, she's never read Beverly's books cuz...wooo, she cut at a great spot. *g*

I also met new people there (not going to list them for now) and we all walked back.

Then, Literacy Signing. Oh. My. Gosh. I walked and walked and walked. Squeeled and screamed, and came close to tears a few times. There were so many authors I didn't get to go to due to time and fatigue. So many I walked by and couldn't stop. Other times, I just kept talking and rambling and babbling. And I kept forgetting to get pictures!!!! I'm such a ditz. And I would say stupid wrong things. >_<

Later, quite a few bloggers and others got together. Sula left :( halfway through. Otherwise, It was insane. I was surprised the people in the next room didn't come banging on our door. Or the hotel security kicking us out. It. Was. Crazy. I almost made a few calls/texts/emails to a few of you unable to make it, but you're all in different time zones and on a weekday. Didn't want to wake anyone(and no internet), but miss you!

My throat is completely sore from squeeling and screaming. I'm not even going to comment on the rest of my body. I met so many people and spoke to so many of them. Everyone was incredibly nice (I was able to miss the not-so-friendly ones).

I have so much more to say, but I need to catch the BART again. List of authors (and maybe a few pics) comes later.

xoxo

BTW: I met Nalini Singh, acted like an idiot, and forgot to take pictures. O_o

Tuesday Pre-RWA

Recap of Monday:
Woke up and blah blah blah. Took BART to San Francisco Airport. Met up with Katiebabs. Tracy joined.
Went to Marriot. Found 3 bars and 3 Starbucks. Waited at the hotel Starbucks. Got free drink :D ehehehe.
Kristiej joined. Got books and gifts!!! (I feel so loved.) Sula joined us. Waited for Ciara and Mr. Stewart, but he was busy. Thai food dinner. And local bar. Errr...my memory becomes fuzzy afterwards. Much chatting and fun talks. I, uh, kinda crashed with Katiebabs, Tracy, and Kristiej. Would have stayed with Ciara, but I...mmm...didn't feel walking anymore would've be a good thing.

Tuesday:
5 hour San Fran tour!!!
Rosie and Wendy will be here in the afternoon.
Jane's coming in the evening.
Tracy'll be leaving after dinner :(

More to report later. Tomorrow will be my favorite day/night. Why? Signings and party!

Personal thoughts: Everyone is so incrediblty completely nice and awesome. I felt at ease almost immediately upon meeting them. This has allowed me to become more mouthy and not worry about saying really dumb and weird stuff. More books have been recommended and I am super excited. Miss a lot of people whom weren't able to make it (seriously, we think about all of you all the time) and hope for even more fun next year and all the years to come!

P.S. Need to start working on getting presents for people.

Monday Meeting of Pre RWA

Guess whom I'll be seeing today? :D If this big fat grin on my face is any indication... No takers?
Hehehehe.
Sadly, I would not get the use of the car today. My sister's already at the hospital. She left at 6AM and I was unconscious at that point to drive her to and get back to where I am now.
Instead, I'll be trying my hand at the BART system.
Then...
Katiebabs
Tracy

And a few hours later...
Kristie

Don't know when I'll see Ciara, but hopefully she can make it for dinner when Bethany comes.

I'm sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo excited!!!

Tuesday:
LisaBea
Rosie and Wendy
And Jane!

By Wednesday night, the huge group should all be here. Including Amy, Sarah and a few others, right? I seriously hope I've gotten enough choclate for everyone. If not, I'll buy ice cream. :D

It may not be a hour-by-hour update of the RWA events, but I will try for a nightly review of the events.

I am so nervous and so excited. This will be so much fun! If I'm not hiding the entire time. ;)

The Dark Knight

The Dark Knight

So, the first thing I've done in Northern California was watch this movie (with Amy ^_^ and her co-workers) and I must say, this is a good movie. As others have done wonderful (seriously awesome) reviews, I'll just do a mini one after thinking about the movie for most of the day. Character focus!

The movie was a wonderful retelling and revision of the Batman adventures. Much darker in tone and touches upon the deeper issues of humanity and society. This definitely gives hope to the the Batman franchise. Despite the exceeding amount of violence, there was a good balance between showing certain aspects as well as leaving enough off screen to disturb the audience. Humours aspects were speckled throughout the movie and I loved that. One of my favorite inclusion of the rather depressing and crazy story; the dark humor worked perfectly to highlight issues while injecting a bit of laughter. Otherwise, I'd be depressed for days.

Now, character breakdown.

Batman- Christian Bale reprised his role as Batman. It's a good touch lowering his voice when he's Batman opposed to this suave careless player role of Bruce Wayne. Even if the sound did bother me quite a lot in the beginning. By the time I got used to it, the movie ended. It also took away some of the emotions that may have colored the character more. Although Harvey Dent and Joker were supposed to contrast and project his internal conflicts, Bale may have needed more screen time to reveal more as Batman. In this sense, I miss seeing more of Batman himself. At the same time, the embodiment of the unbreakable, immovable pillar of Gotham was perfection when paired with Harvey and Joker. Batman, the one individual unable to fully reveal himself to anyone. No matter the circumstances, Bale kept the feeling of buried emotions where nothing can break him. Thus, fully contrasting him from the eventually broken Harvey Dent to the completely boundless Joker. The end was wonderful, to finally nail in the fact that Batman is not a hero. To survive the unbearably heavy burden of Gotham's darkness, Batman had to shed everything else and fully embody the granite Batman.

Harvey Dent- Aaron Eckhart did a wonderful job as the "what could have been" for Bruce Wayne. As the movie puts it, Harvey Dent was Gotham's "the White Knight." Eckhart pulled off the great slow demise of Harvey Dent. Stubborn, driven, but ultimately flawed. As he mirrored the same situations and problems Batman experienced, Harvey's inability to rise above the frailty of human nature paralleled that of Batman's reputation was wonderfully done by Eckhart. You can feel the pull of the character and would almost pity him, if not see how Batman (in all this frozen coldness) was able to survive.

The Joker- Just about everyone has agreed that Heath Ledger was the perfect Joker. I pretty much agree. After reading and watching Batman for all these years, Joker being one of the arch-nemesis for Batman, Ledger's portrayal was the Joker I have been seeing for years. The voice, the movements- psychotically brilliant and utterly fearless to just be. Completely uninhibited and absorbed in living to see the 'truth.' The complete opposite characteristics of Batman and Joker makes them the perfect individual. Everything the Joker had said and done, I was able to believe without a doubt. Not one moment did I stop to think it was an act. Not with the Joker. Nothing can top this. Not within the recent foreseeable future. To be truthful, Ledger as Joker only made my love for the character stronger. Yes, I admit it, I've had a childhood crush on the Joker (part of this love is due to Harley Quinn, but this will probably never develop) and Batman...simulaniously for years. Heh.

James Gordon- I always loved watching Gary Oldman. As Gordon, it was beautifully done. Emotional, compassionate, and wholly real. I loved watching him. He made me believe there was goodness in the world. Completely different from the former three, Oldman's Gordon was loving and just (or tries to be). Dedicated and determined, he was the only one able to not be fully crushed (as of yet) by the pressure of Gotham. Gordon was the true representation of hope, not Dent. As driven as he was, Gordon was also the one that would ultimately choose family, whereas Bruce chose Batman. Gordon was the middle ground Batman, Harvey Dent/Two Face, and Joker could not come close to achieving.

Lucius Fox- Morgan Freeman, another awesome actor I love watching. Able to portray any character exceedingly well, I love how Freeman's Lucius Fox not only assists Bruce, he was another character on par and equality with James Gordan. Sharp and very straight forward, Lucius was the one character completely devoted to his belief. Thus, the only true 'good guy' out of the movie. Uncompromising of his beliefs and trust in Bruce, he's also the only one that equally helps Bruce/Batman as well as stands up to him.

Alfred Pennyworth- Michael Caine also reprising his role. Perfect is the only word. Humorous and wise. If we all had an Alfred, life would be much more interesting. :D The only individual privy to the mind, feelings, and spirit of Bruce Wayne/Batman. Caine was able to give warmth to the movie as well as point out all what others were unable or unwilling to see. Probably one of the few 'complete' individuals that helped ground me while watching the movie.

Rachel Dawes -As much as I love Maggie Gyllenhaal and her as an actress, the character Rachel Dawes does nothing more than fit into the comic book cliques of romantic interests. An unnecessary character who's purpose was to make an emotional and visual impact to the males of the world. I had expected her conclusion in the first movie, but obviously, her situation was to make the final impact to darken the tone in the movie. In this sense, the reason why I've slowly pulled away from comic books and mainstream media hits closer to home. Her existence was for Batman/Bruce Wayne, Harvey Dent/Two Face, and the Joker. Even though the director, writers and actress tried to give Dawes a more realistic strength, it did not change the fact she would have been meaningless aside from the role give. Sorry, but I could barely feel for Rachel, not because of the acting (I love Gyallenhaal), but because of the role and character. (Here's a test; name me 5 strong female love interests without having them been put through unthinkable and insane trial by fire, and whose existence was not somehow determined due to the interactions of a hero.)

Comparison:

Batman and Joker, at the core are the same. They are the outcasts, driven to live their lives; giving the people of Gotham what they deserved. As Batman tries to protect people from the darkness, the Joker revels in exposing the 'true' darkness within people. Harvey Dent, the middle ground of choosing between light and dark not only split (figuratively and physically), it proved Joker's point of the facade of human civility.

Yet, as Joker proved human weakness by breaking Harvey Dent, Batman's immovability was the ultimate strength in difference between the ordinary and the true strength of humanity. As with the last 'test,' the civilians were unable to dirty their hands whereas the those whom lived in the darkest crevice of Gotham, hands bathed in blood, the convicts knew the price of taking a life would rather face death than break for a psychopath. Batman chose the harden himself and became stronger.

Conclusion:

All in all, I have no idea how the next movie would be. With Ledger gone, it would be hard to fill the role of Joker. With Joker having already made an appearance, all other villains pale in comparison to Joker's utter disregard to rules, structure, and life.

All the actors and actresses were great. The storyline, authentic and creative in its own right. I'm glad I watched it. Also overly violent at times, over 2 hours long (I seriously thought the movie ended 3 times before the movie actually ended), it was a great Batman movie.

Tomorrow: The week of RWA. Hehehe.

Recent Changes

Lately, my net usage times have been rather erratic (been doing interviews left and right on top of a full time job). This may continue for some time due to some changes I am implementing in my life.
First off, I've quit my current job.
Second, I found another job which begins almost right after I come back from SF.
In previous posts, I had mentioned quite a few social problems. Well, what's bigger than disagreements between friends? Family!
Yes, for the love of whatever is out there, family is the one weakness that flows and pours into every cell of this forsaken body-with every breath inhaled. The karmic entanglements just do not end.
Needless to say, things were rather bad. Things at work (before I was finally able to quit as well as the continual stress of job searching sneakily-an action I am rather unhappy with but still maintained), problems with friends, and finally-the never ending cycle of some familial and filial obligations where social and internal pressures have pretty much crushed all fledgling attempts at individuality, independence and creativity (I haven't been able to write a single story in over 6 freakin months!). I could write a ****ing story.
And you know what it all comes down to? My own stupidity.
So, to remedy all of this. I've searched far and wide for months on end, against the huge tides of rejections and disappointment. Toiling away to find another job, but finally-yes, this new job shall enable me to finally move out and move on (I hope I don't do anything stupid and lose it).
Of course, many are against such violent actions since my leaving will be seen as a black stain marring the pristine facade of an impossible idealized painting. Especially from my own relations for such extreme actions to be taken within a culture where honor, names, and face means more than most people's lives, well, I might as well strip myself naked and dance in the streets dripping the blood of innocent animals and children. At least being deemed insane would have given me some leeway.
Guess what, I could care less. Well, I still care or else I would be out of my situation years ago when I could have left for college. But what did I do instead-I stayed. The idiot. For family, and if I'm truthful, a little for myself.
If I shall suffer either way, it may as well be one of my own choosing. It'll be insanely less money I can save towards anything, but I'll have some form of freedom.

The tough part will be leaving with my dog. As a few friends had suggested that I leave her, I'd like to take this time to vent off the fact my dog is extremely old and dying of cancer. Yes, cancer. For the sake of economics, yes, I shall abandon the one animal who's always been there with me. Her eyes always following my movements no matter how small. My voice always brings her running and the happiness of just being together. My dog, who adores me as much as food (I would never believe I could mean more). My sweetheart who's dying. Of cancer. Yes. Swell. You see how I have five fingers? If the thumb and the pinkie touch, fold the index second and forth where the first two meet. That's my answer. Am I sweet enough? ;)

Mother decided to delay my departure by revoking transportation rights should I depart (no I do not own a car). Anyone living in Southern California can understand the utter horror. So, instead of any meager savings I may have had, I'll be sending that towards some from of transportation as well as some little hole in the wall to lay my weary spirit; my two new priorities.
My life is going to suck hard. I will barely have any furniture; have only one set of utensils. Go to the library for internet after work(hmm...haven't I started doing this already?). No more going out to movies (unless it's the dollar theater, but I'm doing this as well). Huddle with my dog at night for warmth (okay, now I'm exaggerating). No more shopping for new clothes and shoes (why?! why must you take the shoes?). Overall, be really really frugal. This vacation to SF will have to last me for a while. At least for another year or two. Maybe I'll save enough money by then for another trip.
(Funny how books and food are not listed up there. Hehehehehe.)
What is more important than life itself? More so than love?
Freedom.
Maybe food would mean more, but hey, I'm not splitting hairs.

So, here is my excuse for not being consistent. For being moody and sensitive. For whatever (gad, do I sound insincere? Really need to work on my non existing social skills).
Thank you for listening to me go a little nuts. It's really not that bad. I have food, shelter, clothes. I'm able to go out even if it's to sit somewhere and stare at the trees and sky. My friends and I chat on the phone and online. I have books. I'm not doing much self pitying or crying for sympathy. In truth, I'm just pissed. Mainly at myself for letting certain things in my life happen.
My life has never been smooth. Fate has always been too good a friend and thus enjoys the twists and turns of our intertwining golden threads. I am just really tired of this constant feeling of helplessness. I don't want to be those fairytale heroines that get rescued. I want to break free and have adventures! Go dancing and singing. Or just stay up late watching late night TV. Go to 12AM showings. No more cowardice. I am not broken as some stupid date suggested. I am not fake in presenting who I am. I refuse to be flaky and inconsistent.
Kiss my ass, world. I'm here, I'm here to stay. If someone has a problem with it, nothing short of homicide would make a big enough change.
I promise, this shall be my last bit of personal rant. I do want to focus more on the books and films I've been coming into contact with. I have lots. Just haven't been able to sit down and concentrate for a while.
Book reviews to come! And San Fransisco reports! :D
With much love from me to you~~~

RWA Countdown

Two weeks left!!! First time I'm going to San Fransisco!!!

Part of the time, I'll be helping my sister unpack and move and settle in (yes, one must include the practical aspects of life in with the pivitol fun). The rest, as much as I enjoy sleep, will be going crazy!!!

The discussions about sock puppets, special made buttons, introverts faking it *cough as all women must every now and then cough* and sleepless nights of laughter filled risque topics. Maybe not risque.

Chocolate, liquor, and pizza are on the menues. Potted plants, velvet drapes and beds that require a running start.

RWA 2008. Never been, but so excited.

Not really sure what to do, or say. No idea what I should wear (as Katiebabs has pointed out) or how the weather is like so how am I supposed to pack? Maybe I go to the mall there? :D But alas, no, one must be weary of the economy for there are books awaiting purchases all in the name of charity!

Yes, it's for the charity? What says you? Personal motives? Wha-? How dare you! I'm merely combining a situation where the money that would have been used to purchase these rather enjoyable lifegiving necessities of existance books on these books with a portion of it going to help charity. :P

Also on that note, I will have use of my sister's car so will be able to pick people up and drive people around for certain times and events (if you don't mind a very slow driver because, let's be realistic, I' ve never been there, I'm bound to be scared of the roads). I'm not technically staying in SF, instead I'll be across the bay so won't have the car everyday. ^_^

Random

Something a book lover must not do: Read before leaving for work!!! You will be late!

Obviously, years of being late to class has taught this kid nothing. Doesn't matter if it's two hours before work. Stop believing "one more chapter to tide me over." Just hide the book before clicking the light switch to off to avoid the shiny covers with the nice musky book smell and all those tiny little black prints forming the most wonderful stories ever ever.

Yeah, bad idea.

DIK About Me

Wooo, I'm on DIK!!! When did this happen? And who added the extra tidbits?!?!! Hahaha.

Shameless pimping of my new favorite blog (among quite a few good ones).

Please feel free to drop by and say hello. Or drop by and lurk. Or just oogle at very nice pictures. *ahem*

DIK, the hub of an eccentric group of book lovers. United to stand against ignorant bubs that scoff at the vast reservoir of intelligence. Judging books by it's cover. For silly shame. At least read the back content blurb.

In the meantime, have an apple martini or apple cider and let's party away!

Party party party~~~

Almost forgot the chocolate. :D

Oh, and when I said I remember doing something like this before. I actually have.

4th o July

I hope everyone had a wonderful three day weekend! Some nice BBQ, a couple of drinks, or just plain resting.
On Friday, I went out to a BBQ with friends in a place over 45minutes drive from my house. I brought my dog. We all stayed inside where there was AC until the very end of the evening. Nothing exciting happened, which was a testament of our advance aging in mentality. Or boredom. We spoke of really lame jokes, odd questions, and some politics. See? Old people. Heh.
(She really didn't want to take this picture)
In the beginning, we had some nice icy pina coladas. It wasn't really strong and we were mostly drinking for the ice. Some of the younger, well, the youngest two of the group make jello shots. Us old people tried it for the first time. It was freakin strong. Tears welled up and I had to down some water. Eesh.

The parental figures of the friends' house went out and cooked the hot dogs and hamburgers. There was food everywhere. Fireworks, I missed while trying to comfort my dogs. Since some of the neighbors decided to play with fireworks despite it being illegal. Oh well.

Saturday, was my hangout day with one of my oldest friend. She is now a Nalini Singh addict. Once again, I'm aging a lot faster than I should even with my extremely child-like looks (I say childlike rather than youthful due to the disturbing attentions I received in the past from really disturbed and sick men). We went shopping. Supposedly the fun kind, but although fun- we ditched to go to the supermarket and had a blast buying food. And I really wanted to shop for shoes! My red patent leather maryjanes. *sigh* Shoes. *ahem* Took my sister, who came back for the three day weekend, to hang out with her friends. They were really nice and I brought my dog again. Yes, we're seeing the dog pattern.
(You can see how irritated she was with me. She was so annoyed, but so cute! So, this is now my avatar. Hehehe.)
Today, had to drop off my sister so she can go back to the Bay. It's okay since I'll be visiting soon enough.

Things are a little dicey in my life at the moment so I may not be on as often as I would like (I should be able to read, but may not comment-using library internet when I can). Once things become a bit more settled (hopefully before SF), I'll be able to post all those back reviews I've been saving and editing and trying to add more information to.

How was everyone's weekend?

LibraryThing 100

I saw this on Katie(babs) and Kristie(j) , Sarai, and Nadia. It looked like fun and rather interesting on what is considered "classics." Personally, Harry Potter was good, but I don't think it's the top classics.

Here is the Top 100 Most Popular Books on LibraryThing. Bold what you own, italicize what you've read.

All these books are so-so for me except maybe five, so I eliminated the ****. Yes, I'm a brat. I think it's been rather evident. ;)

1. Harry Potter and the sorcerer's stone by J.K. Rowling

2. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (Book 6) by J.K. Rowling

3. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Book 5) by J.K. Rowling

4. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Book 2) by J.K. Rowling

5. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Book 3) by J.K. Rowling

6. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Book 4) by J.K. Rowling

7. The Da Vinci Code by Dan Brown

8. The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien

9. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Book 7) by J.K. Rowling

10. 1984 by George Orwell

11. Pride and Prejudice (Bantam Classics) by Jane Austen

12. The catcher in the rye by J.D. Salinger

13. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee

14. The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald

15. The lord of the rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

16. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini

17. Jane Eyre (Penguin Classics) by Charlotte Bronte

18. The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

19. Life of Pi by Yann Martel

20. Animal Farm by George Orwell

21. Angels & demons by Dan Brown

22. Brave New World by Aldous Huxley

23. Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte

24. One Hundred Years of Solitude (Oprah's Book Club) by Gabriel Garcia Marquez TBR pile

25. The Fellowship of the Ring (The Lord of the Rings, Part 1) by J.R.R. Tolkien

26. Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

27. The Time Traveler's Wife by Audrey Niffenegger

28. The Two Towers (The Lord of the Rings, Part 2) by J.R.R. Tolkien

29. The Odyssey by Homer

30. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller

31. Slaughterhouse-five by Kurt Vonnegut

32. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

33. The return of the king : being the third part of The lord of the rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

34. Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury

35. American Gods: A Novel by Neil Gaiman (TBR)

36. The chronicles of Narnia by C. S. Lewis (TBR)

37. The hitchhiker's guide to the galaxy by Douglas Adams (TBR)

38. Lord of the Flies by William Golding

39. The lovely bones: a novel by Alice Sebold

40. Ender's Game (Ender, Book 1) by Orson Scott Card (TBR)

41. The Golden Compass (His Dark Materials, Book 1) by Philip Pullman

42. Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch by Neil Gaiman (TBR)

43. Dune by Frank Herbert

44. Emma by Jane Austen

45. Frankenstein by Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley

46. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (Bantam Classics) by Mark Twain

47. Anna Karenina (Oprah's Book Club) by Leo Tolstoy

48. Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell by Susanna Clarke

49. Middlesex: A Novel by Jeffrey Eugenides

50. Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West by Gregory Maguire

51. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov

52. The Silmarillion by J.R.R. Tolkien

53. The Iliad by Homer

54. The Stranger by Albert Camus

55. Sense and Sensibility (Penguin Classics) by Jane Austen

56. Great Expectations (Penguin Classics) by Charles Dickens

57. The Handmaid's Tale: A Novel by Margaret Atwood

58. On the Road by Jack Kerouac

59. Freakonomics [Revised and Expanded]: A Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything by Steven D. Levitt (TBR)

60. The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint Exupery

61. The lion, the witch and the wardrobe by C. S. Lewis

62. A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle

63. Neverwhere by Neil Gaiman

64. The Grapes of Wrath (Centennial Edition) by John Steinbeck

65. Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

66. The Name of the Rose: including Postscript to the Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco

67. The Scarlet Letter by Nathaniel Hawthorne

68. Moby Dick by Herman Melville

69. The complete works by William Shakespeare (read most of it)

70. Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies by Jared Diamond

71. Me Talk Pretty One Day by David Sedaris

72. The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

73. Hamlet (Folger Shakespeare Library) by William Shakespeare

74. Of Mice and Men (Penguin Great Books of the 20th Century) by John Steinbeck

75. A Tale of Two Cities (Penguin Classics) by Charles Dickens

76. The Alchemist (Plus) by Paulo Coelho

77. The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath

78. The Picture of Dorian Gray (Barnes & Noble Classics Series) (Barnes & Noble Classics) by Oscar Wilde

79. The Elements of Style, Fourth Edition by William Strunk

80. Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez TBR pile

81. The Subtle Knife (His Dark Materials, Book 2) by Philip Pullman

82. Atonement: A Novel by Ian McEwan

83. The Brothers Karamazov by Fyodor Dostoyevsky

84. The Secret Life of Bees by Sue Monk Kidd

85. Dracula by Bram Stoker

86. Heart of Darkness (Dover Thrift Editions) by Joseph Conrad

87. A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess

88. Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra

89. The amber spyglass by Philip Pullman

90. A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man (Penguin Classics) by James Joyce

91. The Unbearable Lightness of Being: A Novel (Perennial Classics) by Milan Kundera

92. Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse

93. Neuromancer by William Gibson

94. The Canterbury Tales (Penguin Classics) by Geoffrey Chaucer

95. Persuasion (Penguin Classics) by Jane Austen

96. Anansi Boys by Neil Gaiman

97. The Historian by Elizabeth Kostova

98. Angela's Ashes: A Memoir by Frank McCourt

99. A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius by Dave Eggers

100. The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli

What I find really fasinating is the fact I don't remember most of these books that I've read. I'm sure I've read more of those listed, but seriously, what makes a classic 'classic?' Is it the drama? The tortures writers place their characters through? The biographical or snapshots of a time period/person? Or is it sales? So many books were the 'classics' of their times, or the completely obscure books turn into 'classics' after a time. Some stay classics, but why? How? Should I really honestly care?

I can name so many books not considered classics that made more of an impact on my life. And surprisingly, quite a few are romance. *wink*